Top Hotel reopens with big investment to give guests better rates

Sunday 14 February 2016

One of the Island’s top hotels has reopened this weekend after a big refurbishment and an even bigger investment to help give guests better rates before they check in.

The Atlantic Hotel in St Brelade was closed last month to make room for a hundred thousand pounds worth of new computers, new servers and the latest software.

The Hotel’s owner and Managing Director Patrick Burke said: “Every year we look to introduce improvements that will make the guest experience that much better. The past few years have seen significant changes in the distribution of hotel rooms by third parties, and the introduction of dynamic pricing techniques to match prices to demand, in a similar fashion to those adopted by the airline industry some years ago.

“With this in mind we have made a significant investment in new technology to ensure that our guests continue to receive the best possible value that we can provide within the market place at any given time.

“Our new reservations system will allow us to price our rooms more effectively during the low season and means that at many times of the year we will be able to offer significantly better rates to our guests.

“The new technology, which is designed to automate the reservations and revenue management process as far as possible, will also allow the hotel’s team to continue to focus on providing the luxury experience that has become the hallmark of The Atlantic.”

The family owned hotel has been welcoming guests for 45 years and is the only Jersey member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World (SLH). It's now adopted the company's system so that travel agents and tour operators can book the hotel online and in real time and it's been working with SLH on a new internet booking engine so that guests can book via the hotel's own website.

The hotel might have been closed for a month but there's been a lot going on behind closed doors as part of its annual refurbishment programme. The hotel spends £300,000 each year getting local contractors in to make sure it's looking its best.

Mr Burke said: “Each year we take our hotel apart and undertake, what we consider, essential maintenance, ensuring that the hotel is in pristine condition when it reopens to guests in February. 

“We review every guest room, French polish furniture, take down blinds and curtains and deep clean carpets. The natural wood and stone finishes in the property undergo maintenance, while the exterior of the hotel is thoroughly cleaned and the landscaped gardens manicured.  It’s a month long programme that requires significant attention to detail, but one which I believe keeps our guests returning to Jersey time and again.”